This invention relates to storage cabinets, and more particularly to a hinge system for doors to relatively deep drawers or storage areas.
Cabinets frequently include drawers or storage areas for relatively large instruments or similar pieces of equipment, such as dental scalers, gum treatment instruments and the like. Doors that can be stored out of the way when the drawer or storage area is opened are desirable. Also, doors that can be opened with minimal forward motion are preferred in some situations. For example, in modern dentistry, the dentist and his assistant usually sit beside the patient. Preferably, their instruments should be located close enough to be accessible without getting up. Doors that can be opened with a minimal amount of forward motion are desirable because the storage cabinets can be closer to the dentist or the dental assistant.
Prior art cabinets for this type of equipment frequently use doors that pivot at the top or bottom of the door and slide into the cabinet for storage. This gets the door out of the way, but it consumes some space within the cabinet. Also, these doors usually must be swung to a substantially horizontal position before they can slide into the cabinet. Thus, the free space in front of the cabinet must be at least equal to the height of the doors.